Let's be Frank

It's a thoroughly mashed-up world we live in. Everyone knows a little about everything and no one's afraid to connect things for fear of transgressing a boundary. That's mostly great, except for the vertigo. Which makes it interesting to go back to those visionaries who had their feet in many worlds back when that sort of thing was met with perplexed faces. And it's hard to go down that road without ending up in Zappa's universe. Even on the fairly slapdash Chunga's Revenge album, he made some deliciously unlikely leaps. From serpentine extraterrestrial jazz to glorious sleaze rawkin', here are a couple personal classix.
 

Frank Zappa — Twenty Small Cigars

Frank Zappa —  Tell Me You Love Me

Back to life

It's great to get away. Essential, refreshing, re-energizing, but never enough. Time away just reinforces the reality of what you're getting away from. And so you end up staring down the last few moments before returning to your day-to-day. Not that I'm complaining. I'm happy for the day-to-day I get to have today. But still there is a blueness, telegraphed in a face that stuggles to keep its muscles relaxed while concealing anxiety over rejoining its familiar environment. Which makes this as good a time as any to give oneself fully over to the near-ridiculous nitetime soul jazz cues of Mr. Turrentine. Ten minutes to convince you that you are the suave devil you could never really be.

Stanley Turrentine - Sugar

Steppin' out

They're not letting me go without a struggle. The powers that be seem intent to keep the stress on until the last minute. Not that I absolve myself of internalizing the frantic vibes in the air. Which I appreciate in a song like this, though not necessarily in life situations. But forget all that panic for now. I'm headed out for vacation, and this track can double as my getaway soundtrack. Meanwhile, I'm going to try desperately not to allow this terrifying album cover to take up space in my mind. See you back around Memorial Day. 

Johnny Harris - Stepping Stones

You have lost the thing that's good

Keeping on the vintage brilliance, here's a melodic rocker from the Kinks, a little before embarking on an extend detour into rock opera. Like many fans of the band, I'm not super wild about their hit singles — especially "Lola" — but this B-side to that tune absolutely hits the spot.

The Kinks - Mindless Child Of Motherhood

Spirit animal

I'm not a huge fan of either Buckley senior or junior. But from a musical persepctive at least, their early deaths were a real shame, if only for the high bar they set for vocalizing. This track in particular finds Papa Tim taking his mellifluous voice into some impressively animal-like places. Surely he was possessed by some spirit we should all meet at some moment in our lives.

Tim Buckley - Monterey

Maybe sunshine and maybe rain

It's a cliche that certain r&b songs crystallize the most profound truths and acts of deep philosophical questioning in simple terms bereft of bullshit and well under 3 minutes. How nice when some of those songs make you appreciate that trick as if for the first time.

Marion Black - Who Knows

Nuyorican party time

Back home from hot hot Louisiana, fortified by Boudin and a headful of Cajun squeezebox jams. But coming home doesn't have to mean the party ends. It just has to head up to Spanish Harlem circa-40 years ago. A little less humid, but just as hot.

Joe Bataan - Riot

The trembling, reeling Earth

No, today's song does not come from Barack Obama's vaunted/rumpled political adviser. This Axelrod has had a pretty interesting career as a composer and producer who made some fine music while  managing to avoid the spotlight. This tune comes from his Earth Rot album, which has aged a bit...weirdly. I suppose an album of in-your-face, choral warnings of environmental ruin set to groovy, jazzy backing music may have made sense in 1970. Or maybe it didn't. Really, there's not much more clarity on that question 40 years later.

David Axelrod - The Warning Talk (Part II)

Not to raise their voices

There's sweet justice in the recent consensus that George made the best post-Beatles solo album. I still maintain that Paul had the best career overall, but then Ringo was involved in this awesomeness, so the whole debate is bound for stalemate. Of the many gems on All Things Must Pass, this one manages to constantly, if quietly, amaze. Kinda like George himself.

George Harrison - Run Of The Mill

Beards of Uruguay

I trust that on this near-November Wednesday, you're all as keen to groove to some Uruguayan psych-pop as me. These guys may not be Os Mutantes, but they take me to a grainy, blurry Tropicalia wonderland all the same. I bet that 40 year ago, some well-meaning middle class hippies in Uruguay were rocking out to this while hatching idealist impossible schemes, bless 'em.

Limonada - Dejenme Dormir

Put your face on

Music for getting ready is important. And not just because it makes for a good montage in movies. Often, the anticipation of preparation is better than the thing you're getting ready for. I used to spend way too long choosing music to tie my shoes to, to say nothing of more fashionable matters. I regret none of it. And with the weekend arrived, feel free to crank this one as you put on lipstick or tie windsor knots or get the clown suit on. Whatever you get up for.

Paintbox - Getting Ready For Love

Confronting the Yeti

Fierce Teutonic warriors, gather at my side! Grip tight your spears and let us enter the ice cave to slay the wooly beast that has terrorized our people for too long.

In the movie this song creates in my head, every character looks like a variation on Conan the Barbarian, pre-paternity suit. Still, Yeti is a pretty great album overall, well worth absorbing for those who think Germans are all about sleek precision.

Amon Düül II - Pale Gallery

O Captain my captain

Well, what more needs to be said about our dearly departed Captain that hasn't already been mentioned throughout the weekend? I'm happy that so many people have been giving him his due and acknowledging his singular genius. Here's my small contribution.

Picking a tribute-paying track is no easy matter. You could choose from over a dozen gold nuggets from all phases of his career (except maybe this one). Or any random one from Trout Mask Replica. I've decided to offer up a tune that's a little harder to find, from the criminally still-only-available-on-vinyl (or the Internet) Lick My Decals Off Baby, which is a slightly less inspired kid sister to that towering masterpiece. Which is to say, it's still avant-blues-cubist amazing.

What Decals lacks in original brilliance, it more than makes up for in advertising. Check out this excellent commercial that Beefheart made for its release. If would win a Clio if it had been made today.

Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band - Woe-Is-Uh-Me-Bop

Two of these days

Last Friday's little experiment has inspired me to go full-on with musical homonyms — two songs with the same title that couldn't be more different. On the A-side, a tasty live nugget of chug-chugging, delay-fueled space groovery from the Floyd's pre-stadium days.

These guys were one of my first musical obsessions (pre-drugs, no less!) and it took a while for me to overcome an internal punk-snooty backlash that lasted most of my adult life. I think this one goes to show that there really were some good post-Barrett years. This is what you sound like before you ever hear of tax exile.

Pink Floyd - One Of These Days (live)

Again, chance matches up beardo '70s-ness with a treasure from my tender/prickly youth. I've often made the weird decision to put this on mix tapes for girls. It's a great song of course, just totally wrong for suitoring purposes.

I'm not sure how far I'm going to go with this homonym business, but I've got an idea for tomorrow that I'm rather psyched about. Be sure to swing by.

Camper Van Beethoven - One Of These Days

Mercury rising

Here's a fun one, courtesy of an obscure Spanish psych outfit who made a concept album about the planets. I don't know what the concept is beyond naming songs after each planet. Whatever. Just talking about the solar system is cool. It's some groovy stuff, and you can find it here. So let's take a minute to appreciate the runt of our planetary family, the first to go up in flames if the sun ever has a really nasty temper tantrum.

Proyecto - A Mercurio

Let's talk about New Orleans without using the phrase 'who dat!'

Well, hooray for the Big Easy! Super Bowl. Mardi Gras. Treme. That last one is David Simon's new HBO show that you should all get excited about. It's supposed to be excellent, and my sister is a co-producer on it, so my there's my bias. May as well celebrate all that with a classic Meters jam, still the city's funkiest export.

And as coincidence would have it, I'm playing some hot New Orleans jazz this Friday night with the Ramblers at Sunny's. If you're anywhere near Red Hook, come on out!

The Meters - Look-ka Py Py

Your theme music

Everyone has their own theme music. It lives in your head, sometimes barely audible. If you cultivate it right, it becomes the song that announces your presence at even the most mundane of life's events—your arrival at the bank, your stroll into the office, your freshly-showered emergence from the bathroom. I have one in my head mostly all the time. And it sounds a lot like this red hot jam.

Shades of Brown - Lite Y'all Up